While stilling down for dinner at the “classy” Gastronome restaurant in Idyllwild, in a pair of short, t-shirt and puffy (as my other clothes were being washed) my PCT trail-mates were giving shit about my lily-white legs, so I placed a napkin over them to extinguish their lighthearted-abuse, the waitress upon seeing this came over, and thinking I was cold, asked would you like a ‘blanket’ sir… laughter ensured, at the displeasure of the other well-heeled patrons.

(6) What did you dream of when things weren’t going well?

Cold beer and car-camping

(7) Did you experience anything miraculous?

My hiking friend lost her hiking pole in a raging-river while she attempted to save me from falling-in-face-first, the collective attempts of several PCT’ers to find it was futile, while staring at the raging-river I lamented and resigned to that fact all hope was lost … acknowledging I defeat I turning around and miraculous saw the most perfect hiking “stick” (in length) – an actual sick of wood – resting in plain view against a fallen tree. It got her up-and-over Forester Pass that afternoon!

(8) Any memorable encounters with the elements, or wildlife?

Almost stepping on a rattle snake in the desert and crossing the Knife’s Edge in the Goat Rocks area during a blizzard and in a white-out.

(9) Think back to your “pre-hike self.” Now think of yourself here at the end. Has anything changed?

Feeling of being less tense

(10) Now that you are off the trail, what do you miss most about it?

The simplicity of life – walk, water, food, nature, sleep

(11) Before you started, what were you most afraid of?

Failing to finish

(12) Now that you are finished, what are you most afraid of?

Failing at “normal life” … adapting back to back to being off trail

(13) What’s the difference between life on the trail and life off the trail?

Clarity of life on the trail – what “needs” to be done was clear, normal life is not always clear and can be clouded…